Guitar



R. LORANG, J.' ANDERSON 8v P. LARSSON.

` GUITAR.A

No. 440,882. Patented Nov. 18, 1890.

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RUDOLPH LORAN G, JOSEPH ANDERSON, AND PEHR LARSSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

G U ITA R SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 440,882, dated November 18, 18x90.

Application filed February 3. 1890. Serial No. 339.030. (No model.)

fully described with reference to the accomy panying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and of which- I Figures 1 and 2, taken together, show one of the improved guitars in vertical section on a more or less irregular longitudinal line passing through or near the center of the instrument. The head and greater portion of the 2o neck of the instrument are now shown. Figs.

o and 1 are elevations of parts hereinafter more particularly referred to. Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse section on the line 5 5, Fig.v

2, looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 2 5 6 isa perspective view of the tail-piece viewed from the under side.

The principal object Qf the present inventien is to provide a guitar having a neck which can be readily removed from the body of the 3o instrument.

To this end the body B and neck 1I are formed separate, the finger-board F being of course rigidly secured to the neck. The inner end f of the finger-board projects consid- 3 5 erably beyond the heel end 7b of the neck, so

as to extend over and rest upon the soundingboard S, as is customary. Secured to this projecting portion f of the finger-board near its extremityis a metallic plate 1, from which 4o projects downward a notched plate or hook 2. The sounding-board and also a heavy block 3, which is securely glued to the under side thereof, are each provided with a slot 4 0f sufficient dimensions to admit the hook 2.

Screwed or otherwise suitably secured to the block 3 are a pair of hangers 5, which are preferably formed of a single plate of metal bent to form three sides of a rectangle, (thus its base portion being provided with a 5o slot G, registering with slot 4. Journaled in these hangers and confined against longitudinal lnovement is a shaft 7, one end of which is bent at right angles to form a crank 8, to the extremity of which is secured abellfshaped head 9. The parts are so proportioned and arranged that when in normal position this head is in the center of the sound-opening, and its top about iiush with the soundingboard. It is plated and enhances rather than detracts from the appearance of the instru- 6o ment. Upon the shaft 7 between the hangers 5, is secured a disk 10, havingupon one of its faces a ange 11, which is eccentric with respect to the shaft, its extremity 11 being farthest from the'shaft. The objectof this 65 eccentric is to engage the hook 2 for pressing and holding the end f of the linger-board firmly against the top of the sounding-board. This is accomplished by a quarter-revolution of the shaft. In the drawings the parts are 7o shown in the positions that they occupy when the finger-board is firmly locked in place. To release it, the shaft is given aquarter-turn in the direction of the arrow, (see Fig. 3,) which brings the crank-arm 8 to the position of the 75 dotted line x. This disengages the eccentric 11 from the hook 2, and the latter may be withdrawn. To lock the hook, operations the reverse of these are necessary. It will be understood that the object in making the ange 8o 11 eccentric is to have vit ,draw the hook 2 down so as to firmly press the nger-board against the sounding-board. Stops 12 are formed upon the periphery of the disk for limiting the movement of the shaft to a quarterturn.

To the extremity of the heel end of the neck is secured a metallic plate, 1S, from which, near the top, projects a hook 11, having its nose presented downward. Near the 9o bottom this plate is provided with a vertical slot 15, and at the rear of this slota cavity or recess 16 is formed in the heel. 17 is a heavy block of wood securely glued to the inner surfaces of the end, the sounding-board, and the back of the instrument. To this block is firmly secured by screws a metallic plate 18, which is let into the end of the instrument untill its outer surface is flush therewith. The lower end of this plate is bent at right angles loo to form a lip 19, which is letinto the back in a similar manner. The top side of this plate is provided with a notch 2O for the reception of the shank of the hook 14, the block 17 being cut away opposite said notch for the admission of the toe of said hook.

Secured to or formed upon the rear side of the plate 18 are a pair of perforated brackets 21 and 22, in which a screw 23 is journaled, and by which said screw is confined against endwisc movement. This latter may be accomplished by reducing the upper end of the screw to form a shoulder, which may bear against one side of the bracket 21, either di rectly or through the medium of a washer 24, and upon the other side of said bracket passing a pin 25 through the reduced portion of the screw. Any suitable or wellknown means (of which there are many) may be einployed to accomplish this result. Upon this screw is a nut 26, having a hook 27, whose shank 28 projects through a vertical slot 29 in the plate 1S. Upon the lower extremity of the screw is a winding-post 30 foz.` the reception of a key, whereby the screw may be turned. It will be seen that the nut is eitectually prevented from turning, and that consequently any turning of the screw (which,as before seen, is prevented from moving endwise) will cause the nut to traverse it in one way or another.

In the drawings the parts are shown in the positions they occupy when the neck is secured in place. 'lo remove the neck, the strings are first slackened and the hook 2 unlocked in the manner already described. A key (like an ordinary clock-key) is then applied to the post 30, and the screw 23 turns in the direction that will cause it to elevate the nut 26. The nut is elevated until the hook is disengaged from behind the plate 13, and is somewhat above the lower end of the Slot 15. The heel end of the neck may then be slipped upward to disengage the hook 14 from behind the top of the plate 18, after which the neck may be deflected upward, so as to throw the heel outward from the body, and thus withdraw the hook 27 from the slot 15. This done, it only remains to remove the hook 2 from the slot f1, and the body and neck are separate. To secure the neck in place, operations the reverse of these are necessary. The slot 15 is so located and proportioned that in securing the neck in place the shank 2S of the hook 27 will come in contact with the plate 13 at the bottom of the slot 15, and thus the heel end of the neck may be drawn down with great force. 'The under sides of the toes of the hooks are inclined or wedge shape, the object being to cause them to draw toward them the plates with which they respectively engage. The block 17 is provided with a recess 31 for the aceoininodation of the mechanism behind the plate 18. In order to prevent dirt from entering this recess, the post 30 is surrounded by a short tube or barrel 32, whose upper end is soldered to brackets 22, and whose lower end passes through a suitable perforation formed through the lip 10, to which it is also secured.

ln an instrument having a removable head it is desirable that the strings be capable of ready detachment from or attachment to the body of the instrument. To this end, instead of passing each string` through a separate eyelet in the sounding-board back of the bridge, they are all attached to a separate tail-piece 33, and the latter anchored to a tail-pin 34C through the medium of a tail-loop 35, in the manner which is usual in violins and banjos. The tail-piece consists of a piece ot' metal of approximately V shape, having its broader end bent downward and inward beneath the main portion of the plate and provided with a perforation for each string. The opposite end is bent back, so as to form an open eye or loop, and soldered to the under side ol the main body of the plate. Two perforations are formed through each of the opposite sides of the eye for the passage of the two ends of the string of which the tail loop 35 is formed, said ends being tied together under the tail-piece, as at 38. Preferably this tail-loop consists ot' a double strand of wire cord; but we desire to have it understood that this is not essential, as any suitable material for forming the connection may he employed.

To the end that the strings may be slackened readily, avoiding the necessity ot slacking each one separately by its appropriate key at the head, the tail-pin 3-l is made vertically adjustable. This is accomplished by mechanism in many respects similar to that already described for operating the nut 26.

17 is a block similar to the block 17, and having a recess 31X, similar in purpose to recess 31.

18 is a plate differing from plate 1S only in that it extends up to the top of the instrument and has its upper end bent over on the top of the sounding-board, so as to lform a rest for the tail-string 35. So, also, the parts 19X, 21X, 22X, 23X, 24X, 25X, 20X, 28X, 29X, 30X, and 32X are similar to parts already described bearing similar referencenumbers; but instead of the hook 27 a screw threaded pin 37 projects from the shank 28X, and onto this is screwed a grooved nut, constituting the head of the tail-pin. The slot 29 is covered by a sliding plate 3S, which has an opening just large enough to iit snugly the rectangular shank 28 of the nut 26X. The plate is thus caused to move with the nut and is of such size that it always covers the slot. The head of the tail-pin impresses against the plate and holds it to its place. It will be seen that by elevating or lowering the tail-pin all the strin will be simultaneously slackened or tightened, as the ease may be, and this feature ot the invention may be applied to instruments independently of any other feature of the in vention.

When the instrument is once in tune, it

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enables all the strings to be quickly slackened without disturbing their relative adjustments, so that when the instrument is again desired for use it can be put nearly in tune at a single operation-namely, by applying the key to the post 30X and drawing the tail-pin down to its former position.

The various features of the present invention are of course applicable to instruments other than guitars.

Having thus described our invention, the following' is what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a guitar, the combination, with the body, the neck separate therefrom, and the finger-board secured firmly against the top of the sounding-board, of means for detachably securing the heel end of the neck tothe body of the instrument, substantially as set forth.

2. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, having a finger-board projecting beyond the heel thereof, of means for detachably securing the .projecting end of the finger-board again st the top of the sounding-board and means for detachably securing` the heel of the neck to the body of the instrument, substantially as set forth.

3. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through the soundingboard, of the neck separate therefrom, having the linger-board projecting beyond the heel end thereof, a hook projecting downward from the finger-board and through the soundingboard, a lock on the underside of the sounding-board for engaging said hook, and means for detachably securing the heel of the neck to the body, substantially as set forth.

4. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through the soundingboard, the separate neck having the fingerboard projecting beyond the heel end thereof, and means for detachably securing the heel of the neck to the body, of`a hook projecting downward from the under side of the fingerboard through the sounding-board and an eccentric beneath the sounding-board adapted to engage and disengage said hook, substantially as set forth.

5. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through the soundingboard, the separate neck having the fingerboard projecting beyond the heel end thereof, and means for detachably securing the heel of the neck to the body, of a hook projecting downward from the finger-board and through the sounding-board, a lock beneath the sounding-board, and a prehensible device for operating said lock accessible through the soundopening, substantially as set forth.

6. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through the soundingboard, the separate neck having the fingerboard projecting beyond the heel end thereof, and means for detachably securing the heel of the neck to the body, of a hook projecting downward from the finger-board and through the sounding-board, an eccentric for engaging said hook, and a shaft carrying said eccentric and having a crank for turning it, substantially as set forth.

7. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through t-he soundingboard, the neck having the projecting fingerboard, and means for detachabl y securing the heel of the neck to the body, of a hook projecting downward from the finger-board and through the sounding-board, a lock situated beneath the sounding-board for engaging said hook, and a shaft for operating said lock, having the head 9, situated in the sound-opening, substantially as set forth.

8. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through the soundingboard, the separate neck having the projecting finger-board, and means for detachably securing the heel of the neck to the body, of the hook 2, projecting from the finger-board downward through the sounding-board, the disk IO, having ange l1 for engaging said hook, the shaft 7, to which said disk is secured, having crank 8 and head 9, and the hangers 5,in

which said shaft is j ournaled, substantially` as set forth.

9. In a guitar, the combination, with the body having a slot through the soundingboard and a separate neck having the projecting finger-board, of the hook 2, projecting downward from the linger-board and through the sounding-board, the disk l0, having ange 1l for engaging said hook and stops 12 for limiting its movement, and the operatingshaft 7, to which said disk is secured, substantially as set forth.

10. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck, of means for detachably securing the heel end of the neck to the body, consisting of a hook carried by one member and engaging the other, substantially as set forth.

Il. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, of plates secured to their meeting faces and a hook carried by one member and engaging the plate of the other, substantially as set forth.

I2. In a guitar, the combinatiomwith the body and the neck separate therefrom, of a hook carried by one member and adapted to engage the other and means for moving said hook, substantially as set forth.

13. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, of a hook carried by one and engaging the other and a screw for actuating said hook, substantially as set forth.

14. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, of a plate, carried by one member, a screw suitably journaled to said plate and confined againstmoving endwise, a nut on said screw, and a hook projecting from said nut and adapted to engage the other member, substantially as set forth.

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15. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, of the plate secured to one member, a screw journaled to said plate and confined against moving endwise, and having a post for the reception of a key, and a nut on said screw having a hook adapted to engage the other member, substantially as set forth.

16. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, of a hook carried by one member and adapted to engage the other, a screw t'or operating said hook having a winding-post, and a barrel inclosing said post, substantially as set forth.

17. In a guitar, the combina-tion, with the body andthe neck separate therefrom, of theplate 1S, secured to the body and having the slot 27, screw 23, journaled behind said plate, nut 26 on said screw having the hook 27, and the plate 13, secured to the heel end of the neck, adapted to be engaged by hook 27, substantially as set forth.

1S. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefronnof the plate 18 and the screw-actuated hook 27, carried by the body, the plate 13, secured to the neck and adapted to be engaged by the hook 27, and the hook 14, secured to the neck and adapted to engage the plate 18,snbstantially as set forth.

19. In a guitar, the combination, with the body and the neck separate therefrom, of the plate 18 having notch 20, and the hook 27, carried by the body, and the plate 13, having slot 15, and the hook 14, carried by the neck, the hook of one member being adapted to engage the plate of the other, substantially as set forth.

20. In a musical instrument, the combination, with the strings and a tail-piece to which they are attached, of an adjustable tail-pin and a flexible connection between said tail-piece and tail-pin, substantially as set forth.

2l. In a musical instrument, the co1nbination, with the strings, of the tail-pin 31, the nut 26X, from which it projects, and the screw 23X for actuating said nut, substantially as set forth.

22. In a musical instrument, the combination, with the strings, of the vertically-movable tail-pin, the plate 18X, having the slot 27X, through which said pin projects, and the plate 3S, carried by the tail-pin and covering said slot, substantially as set forth.

23. In a musical instrument, the combina- -tion, with the strings, of the vertically-movable tail-pin, the plate 18X, having a slot through which the shank of said pin projects, the plate 38, carried by said pin, the nut 26X, from which said pin projects, the screw X for operating said nut, journaled behind the said plate 18X and haring the winding-post 30X, and the barrel 32X, surrounding said post, substantially as set forth.

2t. In a musical instrument, the combination, with the body, the neck separate there*- from, means for detachably securing them together, and the strings, of a tail-pin, to which all of said strings are connected, said tail-pin being adjustable, so as to tighten or slackon all ot` the strings simultaneously, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

25. A tailpiece consisting of a piece of metal of an approximately V shape, having' its broader end bent downward and provided with a perforation foreach stringand its apex bent downward and under, 'forming a loop or eye, and two perforations passing through each side ot' said loop, substantially as set forth.

RUDOLPH LORANG.

JOSEPH ANDERSON. IE IR IiAR-SSON.

Witnesses:

R. C. OnoHUNDno, L. M. HoPKINs. 

